Saturday 14 July 2012

THE BATTLE FOR FRANCE IS OVER NOW STARTS THE BATTLE FOR BRITAIN.

 

My best mate and another good friend are embarking on a new endeavor, to re-fight the Battle of Britain day for day. Well as close as we can try. We will be using Bag the Hun as our rules and 1/600 scale Tumbling Dice aircraft.I've read the rules and realy like the card initiative method that makes it very random who will go next.Though first of all we need some where to play. The hotz mats are the best, but a little dear for us at the moment, something to save up for. So my friend and myself are building our own mats. Squirrel has already blazed a path by creating a hex map on some MDF sheets. So I am taking that to the next level. Painting terrain on the board first before tracing the hexs onto it.



I am old school so the size is 2'by 4' there will be two when finished
 First of all I started by spraying a matte varnish to seal the MDF other wise it will just drink the paint. When that had dried I started spraying a mix of buff, brown, and green patches on.Then with my air brush added hedges betweem the fields.




This is the first board I will post the second later.
 Now they are ready for the hexs.     

Monday 9 July 2012

FIGHTING WITHDRAWAL ON THE OUT SKIRTS OF LONDON

After action report 06-07-44




The 2nd Coy. had been tasked with holding a large industrial estate on the out skirts of London. We had no idea why, but that's the way armies operate. All we knew was that some troops from 1st Coy. had taken it and we would hold it until ordered to withdrawal, which could come at any moment. So the men dug in and did what troops all around the world do, hurry up and wait. Some of the attached engineers had started calling the place Little Stalingrad.( they had been with the troops who had bypassed the city late last year).
 My force consisted of two infantry platoons, who had not received a consignment of panzerfausts as yet. An engineering platoon, Our old friends the panther platoon from 2nd Company, as well as two stummels and lastly two SP batteries( one by 105mm and the other 155mm).





Little Stalingrad











 We had only been here 24 hours when we felt them coming before we sore them. My forward scouts reported a dedicated Russian assault Coy. was attacking. My left flank was under attack by an infantry platoon with support, a recce detachment,anti tank guns and a battery of 122mm howitzers. The right flank was facing an other infantry platoon (more like a company). It also had support, a battery of 76mm infantry guns and the deadliest of all a platoon of 122mm assault guns.
the factory on the right flank
 The Russians started by infiltrating a platoon right up to the cross roads. That was when we noticed it, as a storm of bullets hit the small factory holding the engineers. I moved the panthers up to engage them allowing the engineers to remain gone to ground, saving their fire.
 Mean while on the right flank the Reds advanced. That was when I sprang an ambush on them of two pak 40 AT guns. They managed to only kill one tank before return fire wiped them out, not a good start. The Red infantry kept advancing even as we hit them with artillery fire, pinning them but not killing any. At this point I will mention that the right hand factory was held by an infantry platoon with my 2IC and his transport.
The Reds moved up to position to launch an assault with support from the SU 122 guns. My infantry platoon opened fire scoring many hits, but not enough to pin the Reds. the SMG assault fire was murderous killing many of my platoon before we could stop them. We could only hold them for a moment until they shot my platoon to death, all that was left was the command section, who had enough. They fled leaving the 2IC and his trusty half track.

2IC and the little support he got consolidate their position after the assault.
That was when 1st Lie. Willaim Schneider went to work. He moved to contest the objective and face off against the Reds with no support , even though I was trying to move another platoon to help, it would take time to get there. The Reds came on thinking an easy victory, that was when willy and his half track laid done a withering fire hitting the now half strength Red platoon killing many and more importantly pinning them. Then they rallied and tried again to the same result, more dead Reds and pinned. Then the rescue platoon started to arrive, but so did the SU 122 guns. So Willy lead a counter attack against the one tank that made it into the factory as the others got hung up on some rubble. Once again he rose to the occasion, remember that none of them had more than hand grenades and SMGs to attack with. At this point the Red infantry had had enough and fled the battle shooting their own commissar as well in the rout. Willy pinned the tank and killed the Reds 2IC who had been foolish enough to think he could stop'' Blitzkrieg Willy ''. Then dispatched the enemy armor at their leisure. The right flank had gone from lost to well and truely in hand.

The horde that was on the left flank.
Back on the left flank my panthers were doing a little damage but not stopping the Reds. They tried assaulting my engineers, but got pinned and stopped dead. Then went onto survive my fire at them. That was when HQ sent a signal to start withdrawing immediately, so i sent my two stummels to the rear. This was going to be one tricky balancing act. withdraw too fast and we would calapse, too slow and we could get over run. We managed to hold off the Reds until I had to withdraw the engineers then they managed to destroy one of the panthers who in turn moved to cover the objective. That left two panthers to hold the horde, with the help of both batteries. At that stage the artillery fire was still not enough to stop the Reds. They moved right up to the objective and killed another tank, forcing the last one to retreat. But they drove right back in and tracked the Reds MGs blazing and a too and fro melee insured. The winner finally being the panther at that point the Reds had enough, they fled and we withdrew in good order. (5 to 2 victory for Axis)



the final blow